NSRRC Activity Report 2022

“W e have only one Earth.” This is a saying we have often heard in recent decades. The environment has been dramatically changed as a result of the advancement of technology and the development of industry. Environmental pollution and climate change are becoming the most important problems facing humanity that must be solved. Thus, to reduce pollution, sustainable and green chemistry is being developed to reduce consumption of raw materials in production processes, to enhance renewable materials, and/or to reduce the flow of waste and toxic materials into the environment. Here, we bring you four representative works of environmental and earth sciences published in 2022. Yu-Ting Liu and her coworkers developed a method to remove thallium(I) and studied the removal mechanism; this work provides insight into further hazard remediation and waste reduction/reuse. Shan-Li Wang and his coworkers determined gallium speciation in soils and accumulation in rice plants and suggested potential risks to public health via the intake of rice grains harvested from gallium-contaminated paddy fields. Yang-Hsin Shih and his coworkers developed a new method to remove tetrabromobisphenol A, which is genotoxic, via debromination treatment. This novel method may also be applied to degrading other halogenated organic compounds. Finally, people still do not know enough about nature and we have to stay humble in the face of nature. Li-Wei Kuo and his coworkers studied the phenomena of cloud- to-ground lightning, which can cause rocks to become fulgurite. The analysis of rock fulgurites in meso- to micro-scales has revealed significant information on their formation and alteration. (by Yu-Jong Wu) Environmental and Earth Sciences